Stapling or wire-stitching machine



Dec. 27, 1938. A. H. MAYNARD STAPLING OR WIRE STITOHING MACHINE Filed NOV. 11, 1937 6 Sheets-Sheet l E M p Dec. 27, 1938. A. H. MAYNARD STAPLING OR WIRE STITCHING MACHINE 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 11, 1937 Dec. 27, 1938; A MAYNARD 2,141,612

STAPLING 0R WIRE STITCHING MACHINE Filed NOV. 11, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 /0/ E fffl' WA 5 55 Dec. 27, 1938. MAYNARD 2,141,612

STAPLING OR WIRE STITCHING MACHINE Filed Nov. 11, 1957 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Dec. 27, 1938. H' MAYNARD 2,141,612

STAPLING OR WIRE STITCHING MACHINE Filed Nov. 11, 1937 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 5W I In M zvn% 2 /Zfbzm .s:

Patented Dec. 27, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Arthur H. Maynard, Warwick, R. 1., assignor to Boston Wire Stitcher Company, Warwick, R. L,

a corporation of Maine Application November 11,1937, Serial No. 173,982

12 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in. stapling or wire-stitching machines and more particularly to a heavy duty machine adapted to stitch a lining strip or the like onto the inside face of a metal ring or other annular object.

The machine constituting the subject-matter of the present invention, although adapted for other uses, is designed particularly for stitchingflber strips to the inside face of metal windowframes used in automobile construction. Such annular window-frames must encircle the stapleforming and -driving head to properly position its rim between the head and the clincher-anvil so that the strip may be stitched to the inside face of the frame. In ordinary types of heavy duty stitching machines the heads are too large to permit an annular object to encircle it and the wire-feed usually projects from one side of the head to further prevent its use for the purpose specified. In one well-known type of heavy duty machine the wire is fed horizontally and the staple driven vertically in the same plane. In another well-known type of stitching machine the wire is fed vertically and the formed staple driven in the same direction that the wire is fed. In

either case the wire feeding mechanism projects from the head and interferes with the placing of a ring or other annular object to encircle the head.

One object of the present invention is to provide a machine of the type indicated having a compact staple-forming and driving mechanism so arranged as to permit a ring or other hollow article to be stitched while encircling the stapling head.

Another object of the invention is to provide a machine of the type indicated adapted to feed predetermined lengths of a wire strip to be formed into staples and to drive the formed staples in a plane angularly related to the direction of feed of the wire.

Another object of the invention is to provide a machine of the type indicated having a benderbar which is reciprocated with respect to a form ing anvil to form a staple and rotated to position the staple ina plane angularly related to the direction in which the wire is fed.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel forming anvil for receiving the wire as it is fed and gripping the wire while it is cut and formed into a staple.

Another object of the invention is to provide a machine of the type indicated with a novel form of operating mechanism for actuating the elements of the staple-forming and -drivin mechanism in properly timed relationship.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a machine of the type indicated having its parts of compact and rugged construction to adapt it to attach fiber strips to sheet-metal frames without breakage or abnormal wear of the parts.

Further objects of the improvement are set forth in the following specification which describes a preferred form of construction of the machine, by way of example, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view in reduced scale of a machine incorporating the novel features of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged front elevational view of the upper part of the machine shown with a section of its casing removed toillustrate the relationship of the parts at the beginning of a stapleforming and -driving operation;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view in section through the staple-forming and -driving mechanism showing the parts in the relationship illustrated in Fig. 2 with the anvil overlying the end of the benderbar;

Fig. 4 is a front elevational view of the stapling head showing the bender-bar reciprocated with respect to the anvil to form a staple;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 3 with the parts in the relationship illustrated in Fig. 4 showing the anvil in the guide-slot in the bender-bar;

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the formed staple being driven into the work in a plane angularly related to the direction of wire feed;

Fig. 7 is a view similar to Figs. 3 and 5 with the parts in the relationship illustrated in Fig. 6 showing the forming anvil moved to its outermost position and the bender-bar rotated from the position shown in Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is a transverse sectional view on line 8-8 of Fig. 2 showing the relationship of theforming anvil and bender-bar before the staple is formed;

Fig. 9 is a transverse sectional view on line 9-4 of Fig. 6 showing the bender-bar rotated through to position a formed staple in a plane angularly related to the direction of feed of the wire;

Fig. 10 is a schematic detailed view showing the gripping means in the anvil held in open or releasing position by the cutting bar;

Fig. 11 is a view similar to Fig. 10 showing the gripper released by the cutter and actuated to engage the wire in the anvil;

Fig. 12 is a transverse sectional view on line l2-l2 of Fig. 4 showing the camming groove in the periphery of the bender-bar for rotating it during part of its reciprocatory movement;

Fig. 13 is a perspective view of the operating elements of the head shown in extended relationp;

Fig. 14 is a perspective view of the bender-bar showing the camming groove on the side opposite from that illustrated in Fig. 13;

Fig. 15 is a top plan view showing the stapleforming and -driving head encircled by an annular metal window-frame in position for applying a staple to stitch a fiber strip to the inner face of the frame;

Fig. 16 is a view similar to Fig. 15 showing the annular frame turned to another position;

Fig. 17 is a view similar to Figs. 15 and 16 showing the annular frame turned to a third position and illustrating the manner in which the strip is attached to the frame;

Fig. 18 is a perspective view of a section of the window-frame showing the profile of the frame in cross-section and the strip as stitched thereto; and

Fig. 19 is a chart showing the relative movement and amplitude of movement of the various parts of the machine during a complete cycle of operation.

The invention is herein shown and described as embodied in a wire-stitching machine having a frame on which the operating elements and driving mechanism are carried and including a feeding means for intermittently advancing predetermined lengths of a continuous strip of wirestapling material vertically upward to a forming anvil. After a length of wire has been fed a cutting mechanism is actuated which first releases an automatically-operated gripper which cooperates with the forming anvil to grip the wire and thereafter sever an appropriate length thereof from the remainder of the strip. A bender-bar cooperating with the anvil bends the ends of the wire extending from the anvil to form a staple and rotates the formed staple to position it in a plane angularly related to the direction of the wire feed. The formed staple is driven into the work by a driver carried on the bender-bar and actuated independently thereof. The invention also provides a driving mechanism which is so arranged as to operate the feeding means, cutting means, bender-bar and staple-driver in a particular timed relationship to simultaneously form and drive a staple while another length of wire is being fed.

Machine frame Referring to the drawings, the frame of the machine is illustrated in Fig. 1 as comprising a hollow pedestal 2 having a base 3 for supporting it in upright position and a platform 4 at its upper end. Mounted on the platform 4 is a hollow casing 5 of stepped configuration in side elevation comprising a lower section 6, an intermediate section 1 and an upper section or head 8 in which the staple-forming and -driving mechanism is mounted. Although the head 8 is shown in upright position to adapt it to apply the staples horizontally it will be understood that the casing may be arranged to extend laterally to apply the staples in a vertical direction. One side of the lower and intermediate sections 6 and I of the casing 5 is closed by a plate 9 while the upper section 8 of the casing is split vertically to form a removable section l0, see Fig. 12, the plate 9 and section II being attached to the casing by any suitable means such as bolts or screws.

The upper section 8 of the casing 5 is offset laterally from one side of the casing section 1 as shown in Fig. 2, and mounted on the side of the intermediate sections 1 opposite the end of the section 3 is an upright abutment ll providing an opening I! therebetween. The abutment i l is pivotally mounted at its lower end on the casing section I by means of a pin l2 to provide for its adjustment toward and away from the end of the casing section 8. The abutment II is adjustable in position by means of a bolt [3 extending therethrough and into the casing section I, the abutment being held in engagement with the head of the bolt by a spring i 4. The upper extended end of the abutment Ii has a centrally-disposed slot l5, shown in Figs. 2 and 3, for mounting an adjustable slide-block l6 having clincher-grooves 17 formed therein. The block I6 is adjustable vertically in the slot l5 and adapted to be clamped in adjusted position by means of a bolt I8. A table 20 is mounted in any desired relationship on the casing 5 by means 01' struts 2| to support the work to be stitched in proper relationship with respect to the casing section 8 and the clincher-grooves I! in the block 16.

Although the present machine is adapted for use with other types of work such as rings or other annular objects the table 23 is preferably arranged to support a metal window-frame 25 of the type illustrated in Figs. 15 to 18 and used in automobile construction. Due to the fact that such frames are made of metal the upholstery or trimming cannot be directly tacked thereto and a fiber strip 26 must be attached to its inside face to adapt it to receive tacks or the like. As illustrated in Fig. 18, the windowframe 25 has an annular wall 21 bent to form a flange 28 extending at right-angles thereto with offset portions at the margins thereof. The table 20 is adapted to support the window-frame 25 so that it encircles the upper casing section or head 8 of the machine, see Figs. 15 to 17, with the annular wall 21 positioned in the opening i 9 between the end of the casing section 8 and the abutment l I, see Fig. 3.

Driving mechanism The driving mechanism for the machine comprises a shaft 30 journaled in the casing section 6 with one end projecting beyond the side thereof and its opposite end projecting into the hollow casing section 1. A pulley 3| and clutch-mechanism 32 generally similar to that illustrated and described in my prior United States Letters Patent No. 1,495,342, issued May 27, 1924, is mounted on the outwardly-projecting end of the shaft 30. The pulley 3| is driven by a belt 33 which, in turn, is driven by a motor 34 mounted on a platform 35 supported on the pedestal 2. The pulley 3! is continuously rotated from the motor 34 by the belt 33 and the clutch-mechanism 32 is controlled by a foot-treadle 36 to clutch the pulley to the shaft 30. The treadle 36 is pivoted to the base 3 of the pedestal 2 and connected to a clutchoperatin means 31 through a rod-38 and rockable lever 33. Mounted on the opposite end of the shaft 30 in the hollow casing section I is a gear 40 and a driving disk 4| having a camgroove 42 cut in its outer face. A crank-pin 43 projects forwardly from the disk 4! in eccentric relation to the axis of the shaft 30. The gear 40, cam-groove 42 and crank-pin 43 are connected to operate the feeding mechanism, the bender-bar and staple-driver, respectively, in the manner as later more fully explained.

Feeding mechanism The staples may be formed from a continuous wire strip W wound on a spool 55. The spool 55 is mounted on a suitable spindle 5| supported at the side of the pedestal 2 below the table 25. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the wire strip W is fed vertically upward through a suitable guide 52, straightening rolls 53, a one-way clutch 54, and an extended guide 55 into the upper casing section or head 8. Between the guide 55 and the one-way clutch 54 are a pair of feed-rolls 55 and 51. The roll 55 is mounted for angular adjustment on the end of a stub-shaft 55 rotatable in the casing section 1, while the roll 51 is fast on a stub-shaft 59 journaled in an eccentric sleeve 55 mounted for rotation in the casing section and having a laterally-extending arm 5|. The roll 51 is yieldingly pressed toward the pposite roll 55 by a spring 52 connected between the end of the arm and the casing section 5, the spring 52 tending to rotate the eccentric sleeve 59. Each of the rolls 55 and 51 has a serrated segment 53 of a greater radius than the remainder of the roll for gripping the wire strip when the segments are opposed to each other. The length of wire fed during one revolution of the rolls 55 and 51 is regulated by adjusting one of the rolls in angular relation with respect to the other roll to alter the duration of contact of the serrated segments 53 with the wire strip W. The stub-shafts 58 and 59 carry intermeshing gears 64 at their ends opposite from the feed-rolls 55 and 51 and one of the gears 54 is in mesh with an idler gear 55 meshing with the gear #5, previously mentioned on the shaft 35, see Fig. 6. The intermeshing gears 54 are of the same diameter as the gear 45 so that the feed-rolls 55 and 51 are turned through one complete revolution during one revolution of the drive-shaft 35. The serrated segments 53 on the feed-rolls 55 and 51 are so arranged as to cause the wire to be fed during that portion of the rotation of the drive-shaft 5 indicated in the graph in Fig. 19 as later explained.

Forming anvil and wire gripper The strip of wire W is advanced by the feeding mechanism to position a predetermined length w adjacent an anvil in the upper casing section or head 8. As illustrated most clearly in Figs. 3 to 7, the anvil 15 projects laterally from the forward end of a lever 1| and is of generally rectangular form with a concaved cam-face 58 at its rearward side. The lever 1| is located in a slot 12 in the removable section I5 of the casing section 8 and pivotally mounted at its rearward end on a pin 13 extending parallel with the direction of the wire feed. The lever 1| is normally pressed into the casing section or head 8 by a leaf-spring 14 fastened to the casing section at 51. As shown in detail in Fig. 13, the lever 1| has a longitudinal bore 59 with a lateral slot 15 at its end. The anvil 15 also has a slot 15 on its inner face which extends transversely of the slot 15. In the outermost position of the anvil 15, as illustrated in Fig. '7, the slot 16 is in alinement with the guide 55 so that the wire is fed through the slot when advanced by the feeding rolls.

A gripper 11 is located in the slot 15 and has a projecting finger 18 adapted to overlie the slot 16 and a plunger 19 which extends longitudinally in the bore 59. The gripper 11 is normally pressed outwardly of the slot 15 by means of a spring 85 pocketed in the bore .59 and bearing against the end of the plunger 19. Movement of the gripper 11 is controlled by a cross-pin 5| projecting from the plunger 19 through a slot 52 in the lever 1|. The gripper 11 is held in retracted or releasing position while the wire strip is being fed by the cutting mechanism next to be explained and when released by the cutting mechanism the finger 18 engages the length of wire w in the slot 15. Thus it will be ap arent that the length of wire advanced vertically upward by the feed-rolls 55 and 51 will pass through the slot 15 in the anvil 15 with its end portions projecting from either side thereof and the adjustment of the feed-rolls is such that the length of the projecting end portions will be equal.

Wire-severing mechanism The wire-severing or cutting-off mechanism comprises a pair of relatively movable elements whch cooperate to form a shears which,.as illustrated in the present drawings, are constituted by the upper fiat face 89 at the end of the guide 55 and a movable cutter-blade 95, see Fig. 2. The guide 55 is preferably formed in two parts which are clamped in position on the side of the casing section 1 by means of a detachable block 92. The block 92 is attached to the casing section 1 by a bolt 93 and by loosening the bolt the guide 55 may be raised or lowered to allne its upper fiat face 89 with the movable cutterblade 95.

As shown in detail in Fig. 13, the movable cutter-blade 95 has its forward face ground of! at an angle to provide a cutting edge 94 and intermediate its ends it is provided with a depending transverse tongue 95. The blade 95 is mounted on a block 95 with its depending tongue 95 seated in a groove 91 in the block. The block 95 is rigidly attached to the end of a cutter-bar 9| by means of screws or the like, the forward end of the bar having a right-angular recess 95 for receiving the block to properly position the cutter-blade 95 for cooperation with the face 59 at the end of the guide 55. Adjacent its rearward end the inside face of the bar 9| is slotted to provide a recess 99 forming opposite shoulders I55 and IOI. The bar 9| is mounted to slide in a recessed bearing I52 in the removable portion I5 of the casing section 8, see Fig. 12, and the forward end of the bar together with block 95 and cutter-blade 95 slide in a recessed bearing I53 in the block 92 attached to the side of the frame.

The cutter-bar 9| is reciprocated by a lever I55 in timed relation to the operation of the feeding mechanism to sever a length of the wire w from the strip W. As illustrated in Figs. 2 and 6, the lever I55 is pivotally mounted intermediate its ends on a pin I51 fast in one end of a link I55 to adapt the lever for oscillatory and bodily movement in the casing section 1. The link I58 is pivotally mounted at its opposite end on a stud I59 extend ng transversely of the casing section 1. The lower end of the lever I55 is bifurcated to receive the end of a connecting rod II 5 which is connected thereto by a clevis-pin III. The opposite end of the connecting rod H5 is connected to the crank-pin 43 projecting from the driving disk II. A stud I56 adjacent the upper end of the lever I55 projects laterally therefrom into the slotted recess 99 at the rearward end of the cutter-bar 9|; and during the forward movement of the upper arm of the lever I55 as it is rocked by the crank-pin 43 and connecting rod IIO the stud I06 engages the shoulder IOI on the cutter-bar. Further movement of the lever I acts to slide the bar 9| to actuate the block 96 and cutter-blade 90 carried thereby. Movement of the cutter-blade 90 with respect to the guide 55 causes the cutting edge 94 to cooperate with the fiat face 89 at the end of the guide to shear the length of wire w from the strip W, see Fig. 2.

Prior to the feeding of a length of wire w the cutter-bar 9| is moved rearwardly by the engagement of the stud I06 with the shoulder I00 on the bar which is thereafter held in retracted position as illustrated in Fig. 4 by a friction detent II3, see Fig. 12, until the stud moves forwardly again and positively engages the shoulder I 0|. During the rearward movement of the cutterbar 9| the rearward end II2 of the cutter-blade 90 engages the cross-pin 8| to retract the gripper 11 and finger 18 and hold the latter in released position so that a length of wire w may be fed. The detent H3 is in the form of a plunger pocketed in the casing section 6 and resiliently pressed into engagement with the side face of the bar 9| by means of a coil-spring II4, see Fig. 12. During the initial forward movement of the cutterbar 9| as effected by the engagement of the stud I06 with the shoulder IOI the rearward edge 2 of the cutter-blade 90 releases the cross-pin 8|. The spring 80 is thus free to operate the plunger 19 of the gripper 11 to engage the finger 18 with the wire w to thereby hold it gripped in position in the slot 16 in the anvil 10, as shown bydash lines in Figs. and 11. Further forward movement of the bar 9| causes the length of the wire w to be severed from the strip W while it is held gripped in the anvil 10.

Staple-forming and -driving mechanism The staple-forming mechanism comprises a bender-bar I20 which is reciprocable with respect to the anvil 10 to bend the ends of the length of wire w at right-angles to form a U-shaped staple s. The bender-bar I20 is of cylindrical form, being mounted for reciprocation and rotation in a. bore I2I in the casing section 8, see Figs. 8 and 9. As illustrated in detail in Figs. 13 and 14, the bender-bar I20 has a longitudinally-extending guide-slot I22 in its periphery of a width substantially equal to the width of the forming anvil 10 with relatively narrow grooves I23 in the side walls of the slot. At its forward end the slot I22 is deepened to form an inclined pocket I24 and the sides of the pocket are recessed to receive hardened steel guide-blocks I25. The guide blocks I25 are held in place by screws I26 or the like and are provided with grooves which form a continuation of the grooves I23. A helical camslot I 21 is also formed in the periphery of the bender-bar I20 with straight longitudinally-extending portions I28 and I29 at its ends, the helical portion therebetween being of any desired 'pitch. Adjacent its rearward end the benderbar has a transverse slot I 30 in its periphery to provide a driving connection for reciprocating the bar in the manner as later more fully explained.

A staple-supporteri 3| mounted in the pocket I24 of the bender-bar I20 is in the form of a lever having a forwardly-projecting toe 132 shaped with an upper inclined face I38 and adapted to project outwardly between the grooves I23 in the guide-slot I22. The staple-supporter I3I is pivoted at its rearward end on a pin I33 extending transversely of the pocket I 24 In the bender-bar I20, being normally pressed outwardly to project its toe therefrom by a compression spring I34 held in a bore I35 in the bottom wall of the pocket.

Fastened in the wall of the casing section 8 is a stud I36, see Fig. 5, having a roller I31 journaled thereon to engage the cam-slot I21 in the bender-bar I20. Thus, as the bender-bar I20 is reciprocated the roller I31 on the stationary stud I36 cooperates with the cam-slot I21 to cause the bender-bar I20 to first move in a straight line, then to rotate from the position shown in Fig. 8 to that shown in Fig. 9, and thereafter to again move in a straight'line. During the first straight line movement of the bender-bar I 20 the ends of the hardened steel blocks I25 engage the extended ends of the length of wire 10 lying across the anvil 10 to fold them into the grooves I23 to form a staple s which is thereafter turned with the bender-bar as the latter is rotated and then moved in a straight line toward the work to be stitched.

As illustrated most clearly in Figs. 2 and 6, the bender-bar I20 is reciprocated by means of a bell-crank lever I 40 pivotally mounted on the stud I09, previously mentioned, at one side of the link I08. One arm I of the bell-crank lever I40 extends downwardly to overlie the outer face of the drive-disk H and carries a follower roller I42 at its end which engages the cam-groove 42 on the disk. The opposite arm I43 of the bellcrank lever I40 extends upwardly through a suitable slot in the casing section 0 and has a reduced rounded end I44 which enters the transverse slot I30 in the bender-bar. As the lever I40 is oscillated its rounded end I44 rides in the slot I30 to reciprocate the bender-bar I20 while permitting rotation thereof about its axis. The camgroove 42 in the driving disk H is so formed as to cause the bender-bar I20 to be reciprocated in particular timed relation to the other operative.

elements as indicated diagrammatically in Fig. 19. As explained above, the reciprocation of the bender-bar I20 first acts to form the staple and thereafter turn the staple to position it in a plane angularly related to the direction in which the wire is fed.

The formed staple s is driven into the work by means of a driver-bar I50, illustrated most clearly in Fig. 13. The bar I50 is of generally rectangular outline in cross-section with its outer face rounded to correspond to the curvature of the cylindrical bender-bar I20. The bar I50 is adapted to slide in the guide-slot I22 in the bender-bar I20, being formed with laterally-extending flanges I5I which engage the grooves I23 in the slot I22. The outer end of the bar I50 is recessed on one side to receive a removable blade I52 of hardened steel and on the opposite side its end is beveled to form a cam-face I53 which functions for a purpose as will later appear. At its rearward end the bar I50 has a transverse groove I54 for connection with the driving mechanism of the machine.

The bar I50 is actuated by a cylindrical drivingelement I55 having a col1arlike flange I56 at one end engaging the slot I54 in the bar I50. The driving element I55 is of the same diameter as the bender-bar I20 to adapt it to reciprocate in the bore I2I in the head 8 and is provided with a forwardly-projecting end I51 of cylindrical form which projects into a suitable bearing bore in the rearward end of the bender-bar. As the driving element I55 is reciprocated with respect to the I56 and I54 causes the driver-bar I50 to be reciprocated while permitting relative rotation of the driver-bar about the axis of the driving element.

The driving element I55 is actuated by the lever I and for this purpose has a slot I58 in its rearward end into which the end of the lever projects. A transverse hole I59 in the end of the driving element I55 alines with a hole I60 in the end of the lever I05 to receive a clevis-pin I6I to connect the driving element with the lever I05. Thus, when the driving disk H is rotated the lever I05 is oscillated by the crank-pin 43 and connecting rod IIO which, in turn, reciprocates the driving element I55 and driver-bar I50, the link I08 providing a flexible connection to compensate for the angularity resulting from the translation of oscillatory movement to reciprocatory movement. It will be understood that the cam-groove 42 and crank-pin 43 are so related on the driving disk 4| as to cause the benderbar I20 to be actuated to form a staple :2, turn it angularly to a new position, move it into position to be driven, and thereafter actuate the driverbar I50 to drive the formed staple. The structure and arrangement of the mechanism of the machine having now been described in detail, the mode of operation of the complete machine is as next explained.

Mode of operation of the machine The machine is prepared for operation by mounting a spool 50 of the wire stapling material W for rotation on the stud 5I and leading the end of the wire upwardly through the straightening rolls 53, clutch 54, feed-rolls 56 and 51, and guide 55. The cycle of operation commences with the parts in the relationship illustrated in Fig. 2 and before a staple s can be driven the machine must be operated once to feed a predetermined length to of the wire. To start the operation of the machine the treadle 36 is depressed whereby its motion is transmitted through the rod 38 and lever 39 to actuate the clutch-operating means 31 to engage the clutch 32 with the driving pulley 3I. With the clutch 32 engaged the shaft 30 is driven by the motor 34 through the belt 33 and pulley 3| to rotate the gear 40 and driving disk 4|. There being initially .no length of wire in the anvil 10, the bender-bar I20 is merely reciprocated as the bell-crank lever I40 is oscillated by the action of the cam-groove 42 on the follower I42. During the forward stroke of the bender-bar I20 the lever I05 is actuated by the crank-pin 43 on the driving disk H and the connecting rod IIO to move the driver-bar I50 through its forward stroke. As the driverbar I50 moves forwardly the beveled face I53 at its forward end engages the cam-face 68 at the rear of the anvil 10 and rocks the lever 1| on its pivot-pin 13 from the position shown in Fig. 3 to that illustrated in Fig. 7. The slot 16 is then alined with the guide 55 so that the wire strip W as it is advanced by the feed-rolls 56 and 51 will enter the slot. The feed-rolls 56 and 51 are so related on the stub-shafts 58 and 59 that their serrated segments 63 will engage and grip the wire after the anvil 10 has been moved outwardly to advance a blank w of such length that its ends will project equal distances beyond the sides of the anvil.

After a length of wire w has been fed to a position across the anvil 10 the lever I05 will have been oscillated by the crank-pin 43 and connecting rod IIO to engage the stud I06 adjacent its upper end with the shoulder IOI on the cutterbar 9 I. Continued forward movement of the lever I05 will thus move the cutter-bar 9I forwardly to first release the pin 8| depending from the plunger 19 of the gripper 11. The spring will then slide the gripper 11 outwardly of the lever 1I, causing the finger 18 to yieldingly grip the length of wire w in the slot 16. Further continued movement of the cutter-bar 9I causes the cutting edge 94 of the blade to slide across the upper flat face 89 of the guide 55 to sever the length of wire in the manner as illustrated in Fig. 2. During the feeding, gripping and severing operations the bender-bar I20 is reciprocated through its forward and rearward strokes by the bell-crank lever I40. After the bender-bar I20 and driver-bar I50 have been moved rearwardly beyond the anvil 10 the spring 14 rocks the lever H from the position shown in Fig. 7 to that shown in Fig. 3 so that the projecting ends of the length of wire w overlie the end of the benderbar I20 in alinement with its grooves I23. When the parts have been returned to their initial position, illustrated in Fig. 2, the clutch-operating mechanism 31 automatically releases the clutch 32 and a suitable brake, not herein shown, stops the machine. The annular window-frame 25 or other article to be stitched is placed on the table 20 so that it encircles the casing section or head 8 as illustrated in Figs. 15 through 17 to position the vertical wall 21 of the frame in the opening I9 between the end of the bender-bar I20 and the abutment II, see Fig. 2.

When the foot-treadle 36 is again depressed rotation of the driving disk 4I oscillates the bellcrank lever I40 to reciprocate the bender-bar I20. At the beginning of its forward stroke the bender-bar I20 is moved at a comparatively slow rate from the position shown in Figs. 2 and 3 to the position shown in Figs. 4 and 5, due to the slight eccentricity of that portion of the camgroove 42 engaging the follower roll I42. During the initial forward movement of the benderbar I20 the roller I31 is in engagement with the straight portion I29 of the cam-slot I21 so that the bender-bar is held against turning. The end portion of the bender-bar I20 at opposite sides of the guide-slot I22 will thus engage the opposite projecting ends of the length of wire w and bend them over to fold them against the opposite sides of the anvil 10 to form a U-shaped staple s. After the staple s has been formed in this manner and while the straight portion I29 of the cam-groove I21 is engaged by the roller I31 the driver-bar I50 is advanced by the lever I05 acting through the driving element I55 to engage its beveled face I53 with the cam-face 68 on the anvil 10 whereby it will cam the anvil out of the guide-slot I22. The formed staple s will then be supported in the bender-bar I20 with its opposite legs in the grooves I23 thereof while the toe I32 of the staplesupporter I3I, having been moved beyond the anvil 10 and pressed outwardly by the spring I34, will engage the crossbar of the staple on its upper inclined face I38.

As the forward movement of the bender-bar I20 is continued the curved portion of the cam-groove I21 will be engaged by the roller I31 to cause the bender-bar to be rotated from the position shown in Fig. 8 to that shown in Fig. 9. In other words, the bender-bar I20 will be rotated to position the formed staple s in a plane angularly re-- lated to the direction of feed of the wire strip W. The driver-bar I50 carried by the benderbar I20 is rotated therewith, the flange I56 and slot I54 permitting relative movement between 75 the driver-bar and driving element I55; while the slot I30 in the bender-bar I20 permits relative rotation thereof with respect to its operating lever I 40. After the bender-bar I 20 has been rotated as explained the straight portion I20 of the cam-groove I21 is engaged by the roller I31 to cause the bender-bar to be moved forwardly without further rotation. As the bender-bar continues its forward movement and completes its forward stroke its end engages the fiber strip 26 and presses it against the vertical wall 21 of the window-frame 25. The driver-bar I50 continues to move forwardly after the bender-bar I20 has completed its forward stroke and drives the formed staple s outwardly of the bender-bar to cause its legs to pierce through the fiber strip 26 and metal wall 21 of the window-frame 25. During the driving of the staple s the staplesupporter I3I is cammed into the slot I22 in the bender-bar I20 against the action of the spring I 34 by the engagement of the end of the driver-blade I52 with the inclined face I 30 on the toe I32 of the supporter. As the ends of the legs of the staple s penetrate the work they engage the clinching grooves I1 in the abutment I6 and are bent over and clinched against the frame.

After the staple has been driven and its legs clinched the bender-bar I20 is moved through its return stroke to its initial position illustrated in Fig. 2 by the bell-crank lever I 40. It will be understood that while the staple s is being formed and driven the cutter-bar SI and gripper 11 have been withdrawn and the feed-rolls 56 and 51 operated to advance another length of wire to the anvil 10 in the manner as previously explained. The machine thus forms and drives a staple s while another length of wire to is being fed into position, and is operated to drive and clinch a staple at each depression of the treadle 36. As indicated in Figs. to 17, the windowframe is turned to various positions between staple-driving operations to stitch the fiber strip 26 to the inside face of the frame at a number of points around its periphery.

As illustrated in the drawings the curved portion of the cam-slot I21 has a pitch of such degree as to rotate the bender-bar I20 through a 90 arc during each forward stroke. understood, however, that the pitch of the camslot may be varied within the scope of the present invention to rotate the bender-bar through any arc from 0 to 180. Thus the term "plane angularly related to the direction of feed of the wire" as used in the claims is intended to include any angular relationship from 0' to 180. It will also be understood that the bender-bar I 20 may be provided with a multiplicity of cam-grooves of different pitch with retractible studs in the head 8 to adapt the machine for use with different kinds of work to be stitched; or the studs may be so arranged as to be manually or automatically controlled to alter the degree of rotation of the bender-bar when stitching a single piece of work.

It will be observed that the present invention provides a stapling machine having staple-forming and driving means compacted within a space of small dimensions to permit it to be encircled by the work to be stapled and of rugged construction to adapt it to drive staples through metal objects. It will further be observed that the invention provides a machine which drives the staples in a plane anguiarly related to the direction of the wire feed so that the latter will not interfere with the placing of a ring or other annular object to encircle the stitching mechanism.

Itwillbe,

While I, have herein described and illustrated one preferred embodiment of the machine it will be understood that various modifications may be made in the form and arrangement of the elements thereof without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Therefore, without limiting myself in this respect, I claim:

1. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, an anvil having a slot therein, means for feeding a length of wire through the slot in the anvil, means for gripping the wire in the slot, a benderbar reciprocable with respectto the anvil to bend the end portions of the wire to form a staple, means for rotating the bender-bar to position the formed staple in a plane angularly related to the direction of feed of the wire, and means for driving the formed staple.

2. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, an anvil, means for intermittently feeding predetermined lengths of a continuous wire strip of the anvil, means for severing the lengths of wire from the strip, means controlled by the severing means and cooperating with the anvil to grip the wire lengths, a bender-bar reciprocable with respect to the anvil to bend the ends of the wire lengths to form staples, means for rotating the benderbar to position the formed staples in a plane angularly related to the direction of feed of the wire strip, and means carried by the bender-bar for driving the staples.

3. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, an anvil, means for feeding a length of wire to the anvil, a bender-bar reciprocable at right-angles to the direction of feed of the wire to bend the end portions thereof to form a staple, a staplesupporter on the bender-bar for supporting the formed staple, means for rotating the bender-bar to position the formed staple in a plane at rightangles to the direction of feed of the wire, and means carried by the bender-bar for driving the formed staple.

4. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, a frame, clincher-means on the frame, an anvil pivotally mounted on the frame, means for feeding a length of wire to the anvil, a bender-bar reciprocable with respect to the anvil to bend the end portions of the wire to form a staple, means for moving the anvil away from the bender-bar after the staple is formed, means for rotating the bender-bar to position the staple in a plane at right-angles to the direction of feed of the wire and opposite the clincher-means, and means carried by the bender-bar for driving th formed staple.

5. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, a lever pivotally mounted at one end and having an anvil at its opposite end, means for feeding a length of wire to the anvil, means adapted to cooperate with the anvil to grip the length of wire, a bender-bar adapted to cooperate with the anvil to bend the end portions of the wire to form a. staple and to thereafter support the staple, means for rocking the lever on its pivot to move the anvil away from the bender-bar, means for rotating the bender-bar to position the formed staple in a plane angularly related with respect to the direction of feed of the wire, and means for driving the staple.

6. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, a horizontally-disposed table, an abutment extending upwardly through said table and having laterally-extending clincher-grooves on its vertical face, an anvil above the table in spaced relation to the abutment, means below the table for feeding a length of wire vertically through the table to said anvil, a bender-bar movable at rightangles to the direction of feed of the wire and cooperating with the anvil to form a staple, means for rotating the bender-bar to position the staple in a plane angularly related to the direction of feed of the wire with its legs opposite the clincher-grooves in the abutment, and means for driving the formed staple through the work to clinch its legs thereagainst.

7. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, an anvil, a bender-bar for forming staples on the anvil, said bender-bar having a transverse slot in its periphery, a lever engageable with the slot in the bender-bar for moving the latter longitudinally while permitting rotation thereof, means for rotating the bender-bar, and a stapledriver cooperating with the bender-bar.

8. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, a head comprising a casing, an anvil in the casing, a bender-bar in said casing having a longitudinally-extending guide-slot in its periphery, said bender-bar cooperating with the anvil to form a staple, means for reciprocating and rotating the bender-bar, a driver-bar mounted for reciprocation in the guide-slot in the benderbar and having a transverse slot adjacent one end, and a driving element having an annular flange cooperating with the slot in the driverbar for moving it longitudinally while permitting it to rotate.

9. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, a head comprising a casing, an anvil in the casing, a cylindrical bender-bar mounted for reciprocation and rotation in said casing and adapted to cooperate with the anvil to form a staple, said bender-bar having a longitudinally-extending guide-slot in its periphery with grooves in the side walls of said slot, a staple-supporter within the guide-slot, means for reciprocating and rotating the bender-bar, a driver-blade mounted for reciprocation in the guide-slot of the benderbar, and means for actuating the driver-blade in timed relation to the movement of the benderbar.

10. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, a

45 head comprising a casing, a lever pivoted to the casing at one end and having an anvil at its opposite end, a gripper movable longitudinally in the anvil, actuating means for resiliently urging the gripper into cooperative relation with the anvil to grip a length of wire, means for feeding a length of wire to the anvil, a laterally-movable cutter-bar for severing the length of wire, said cutter-bar operating to control the actuating means for the gripper to retract the latter while the wire is being fed and to release the gripper while the wire is being severed, a bender-bar reciprocable with respect to the anvil to form a staple, and means for driving the formed staple.

11. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, a head, an anvil mounted on the head for movement transversely thereof, means for feeding a length of wire to the anvil, a reciprocable benderbar in the head adapted to cooperate with the anvil to bend a length of wire supported thereon to form a staple and thereafter support the formed staple, and means for holding the benderbar against turning movement during its forward stroke until the staple has been formed and thereafter turning the bender-bar to position the formed staple in a plane angularly related to the direction of feed of the wire.

12. In a stapling or wire-stitching machine, a head, an anvil mounted on the head for movement transversely thereof, means for feeding lengths of wire to the anvil, a reciprocable bender-bar having spaced side walls adapted to bend a length of wire on the anvil to form a staple and thereafter support the formed staple therebetween, said bender-bar having a slot in its periphery with straight axially-extending end portions and a helical portion between the straight portions, and means on the head engaging the slot in the bender-bar whereby the latter during its forward stroke is held against turning until a staple has been formed, thereafter turned to position the formed staple in a plane angularly related to the direction of feed of the wire and finally held against turning during the remainder of its stroke.

ARTHUR H. MAYNARD.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

Patent No. 2,1l,1,612'.

ARTHUR H It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 6, second December 2'7, 1958.

MAYNARD.

column, line 20, claim 2, for the word "of" second occurrence, read to; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office Signed and sealed this 51st day of January, A.D. 1939.

(seal) Henry Van Arsdale Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

